Pretending
by Imprisoned Fire
Summary: There was nothing he could do, nothing at all. The only thing he could do was stay by her side as they both waited for the inevitable to come. SasukexSakura oneshot


Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters/places/objects related to Naruto. They all belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I do own this plot line though and even if it turns out to be the worse thing ever written I still own it, so no coping please.

* * *

A heavy silence weighed in the air. It almost seemed to move with the wind that blew through the trees. Only the rustling leaves could be heard echoing around, mixing with the silence. Not even any animals could be heard, as if they too know what was happening and what would soon occur. 

Sasuke shifted his position on the ground, moving to keep his legs from falling asleep beneath him. Dried leaves and fallen twigs snapped under him, joining the silent wind and stirring leaves above.

Somewhere deep in his mind, where he pushed all thoughts and memories he wouldn't allow himself to think about, he wished the wind was all he could hear.

He rubbed his hands, trying to warm them up a bit. The air was slightly chilly today and a numbing coldness had filled his hands from being out for so long. It wasn't too bad though, it wasn't anything he couldn't live with.

Sasuke took a deep breath of air, letting it out through his nose. This was supposed to be a simple, risk-free, routine mission. Nothing more, nothing less. They weren't even expected to get a paper cut or any other minor injury. But...

"Sasuke?" Sasuke glanced towards the voice, the reason he was sitting out here. Normally he wouldn't even give the appearance that he was paying attention, as if he didn't even notice someone was talking to him. But he did this time. He made it clear that he wasn't just hearing but listening too.

"Hn."

"How long... as it been?"

"Around ten minutes." He guessed. He didn't think it would be this long, but then she could be just as stubborn as he could. And that was putting it mildly.

"Really? It doesn't seem like it's been that long." Sasuke turned towards her completely. He wondered if she was going to stay quite this time, if the heavy silence would be broken again or if it would stay whole at last.  
_  
'Sakura...'_

She was right beside him, lying on the ground with her pink hair spread out beneath her. Some leaves and twigs were tangled in the silk strands, ruining whatever shine it had. What little rays of sun light that could get through the tree branches danced across her face, giving it more color then he knew it really had.

Sakura was staring up at the trees, a soft smiling playing on her face. He couldn't see anything worth smiling about. But now that he thought about it, she seemed to find a way to smile in even the grimmest of times. He could never understand how she could, he who could count all the times he truly smiled on one hand.

They had been on their way back from a mission; a simple, routine mission. The village was only a few miles away. Just twenty more minutes and they would be home. But only one of them would actually get there...

One thing he hated more then anything else was not being in control, not having the power to be in control. He hated not being able to change what he wanted, to do what he pleased. So many things had happened in the past that he hadn't been able to do anything about. Now was different though, now he had the power to change the things he wanted, to do what he wanted to do.

But this was one of those times when he couldn't do anything. But then, nobody could do anything about this particular situation. There was nothing he or anyone else on this entire plant that could do anything to help her.  
_  
"Sasuke, you won't leave... will you?" _

"... No, I won't go anywhere."

Almost any other person would have left, went to try and find some help. They would have left her alone... lying here on the forest floor.  
He didn't leave to find help, because he knew it was pointless. There was nothing he could do, nothing anyone could do...

Sasuke followed Sakura's gaze, looking up at the trees. He could see specks of the sapphire sky through the moving branches. Normally one wouldn't even be able to see a small, little dot of the sky because the tree branches were so thick. But the strong wind broke them up allowing a temporary view of the sky that was so well hidden. It had clamed down some in the last few minutes, but it was still blowing harder then usual.

He wondered if Sakura was looking at the sky or if her mind was lost in a haze. Many of the times he glanced at her she ether looked unconscious or unaware of her surroundings. Only a few times did she seem in her right mind. She would call his name like she had just seconds ago, probably to make sure he was still there. Then she would ask him some meaningless question. Whither or not she really wanted an answer to the questions he wasn't sure.

The leaves continued to rustle, the branches continued to sway. It was almost like they were waving, trying to beckon them up there to join their dance with the wind.

He found himself wishing the wind had a physical form, wished that he could find it and kill it for what it had caused. That seemed to be his way to deal with not being in control, to go and find whatever it was that caused the unwanted change and destroy it. It had been the same in the past, and the desire was still the same now.

But he couldn't do that. Just like he couldn't do anything about this situation he couldn't destroy the wind. That would be like trying to stop time.  
_  
"Sasuke... why are you staying?"_

That had been one of Sakura's questions that went unanswered. Truthfully, he wasn't really sure why he stayed. He could have left her, ignored his common sense and what little medical knowledge he had to try and find help.

But he didn't.

"Sasuke..." He turned towards her again. Sakura was still staring at the sky and he wondered for a minute if she just spook out loud, lost in a haze. But no, her jade colored eyes were clear of any confusion and he was sure she was thinking straight. Her pause in speech merely tipped him off that she was hesitant to say whatever she was trying to say.  
After a few seconds of silence passed he wondered if she forgot what she was saying, but then she turned towards him with that soft smile on her face.

"I think... I already know the answer... but..." She paused for a moment, almost seeming to rest. Then her smile grew, like she was amused with something. "Sasuke... You don't love me... do you."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Part of him wondered why she would even ask such a foolish question. Her mind mast really be messed up for her to ask something like that.But as he stared down at her delicate face and the soft smile playing across it, it hit him that what she said hadn't been a question. What she said had been a statement.

"No." Sasuke confirmed. It was true, he didn't love her, not the way she wanted him too anyway. Yes, he cared for her; no matter how hard he tried to deny it she was his friend and he always felt the desire to protect her. But he didn't love her.

Sakura's reaction surprised him though. He had expected tears or some sort of guilt speech. The girl always was overemotional and he wouldn't put it pass some part of her to use the situation to her advantage, if even for a minute. Instead she gave a small laugh, or as close to one as she could on her condition.

"You know what's strange?" Sakura whispered, her jade eyes staring back up at the sky. "I think I've known that... for a while now. But I just...wouldn't admit it." Her eyes dropped closed. He could tell she was starting another battle for conscious. "That was silly of me... wasn't it?"

"Yeah." He agreed.  
_  
'How many?'_ He wondered. _'How many more times will she fight it off before her eyes close for the last time?'_  
_  
'Not many more now.'_ A voice whispered in the back of his mind as he returned his gaze to the area above him. His thoughts began to drift off as he watch the leaves dance along with the wind. It drifted off to one of the newer memories trying to be pushed to the back off his mind. One he knew he would end up dwelling on for some time.

They were on their way back from a routine mission. Just the two of them. He had gone ahead, letting Sakura fall just enough behind that she wouldn't be able to bother him. He really hadn't thought much about it, seeing as they had been so close to the village. If he had been paying better attention to the weather and his surroundings, he would have acted differently.

He had sensed the sudden change in the air current, knew that the wind was going to pick up. Before even realizing it he had braced himself for it, knowing that a strong enough gust could send him flying.

And a strong gust it was. When it hit him only seconds later he felt the tree sway under him. He had to shift his position, waiting for the wind to die or to get use to the force pressing against him.

That's when he heard it. A scream cutting through the forest air like a whip. A sick horror filled his senses as he spun around so fast it was a wonder he could even move afterwards.

She had been maybe six yards away. He hadn't realize how far ahead he had gotten, and boy did he regret it.

Sakura was falling through the air. She almost seemed to be moving in slow motion. Even from this distance he could see her eyes wide with shock and fright. Her scream was still echoing through out the air, but it wasn't nearly as sickly sounding as the noise that followed it.

Sasuke didn't move when he heard the leaves shift next to him, but he did jump slightly when he felt something touch his hand. Looking down he saw Sakura's hand on top of it. It looked so small and pale compared to his.

Sasuke looked up at her face, watching as her eyes fluttered open to look back at him. He could tell she was getting weaker. It probably wouldn't be much longer now. He felt her try to tighten her grip on his hand, and it hit him just how weak she was. He almost couldn't even feel it.

"I know... you don't love me Sasuke... but..." That smile came across her face again, only now it seemed almost as weak as the grip on his hand. "Do you think you could... maybe... pretend that you do? Please, even if it's just for a minute."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Although his face didn't show it he was rather surprised by her request. She wanted him to pretend that he loved her? What made her ask him that? Maybe she was delirious. But no, her eyes were clear of any confusion.

"Your too childish Sakura." Sasuke said, looking away from her. "You know I won't do that."

He felt Sakura's hand leave the top of his and suddenly grasp the edge of his shoulder. Out of pure instinct he whipped around and grabbed it, just barely able to stop himself halfway through the action. The ending result was him gripping her wrist several inches away from him. Sasuke silently cursed at himself for the reflex, loosing his grip on her wrist but not completely letting go.

Sakura was still staring at him, only now her smile seemed to have faded. He saw that her eyes looked to be dimming. They may have looked like simmering jades once but it now seemed as if their light was slowly going out.

Sasuke grumbled to himself as a forced stab of guilt spread through him. He may be arrogant but he still had _some _sentimental values, and possible being the cause of that look on Sakura's face definitely hit a few of them. Sasuke closed his eyes, trying to think of something he could do that would leave his pride intact.

"I feel so sleepy..."

Sasuke snapped his eyes open. Sakura was once again staring up at the sky block by branches. She was smiling again, only a strange sadness seemed mixed in with it this time.

The battle was almost over. He could tell from the sound of her voice she was getting too weak to fight any more.

Once again he felt that rage of not being in control, felt that desire to destroy what had caused this situation. If there was something he could do, he would do it. But there wasn't anything he could do.

The wind was to blame for all of this. It had pushed Sakura off the tree branch she had barely landed on, having no time to brace herself for the strong gust that hit her. But that fall wasn't what caused her sever injures. She would have survived the fall with little to no injures.

It was the branch, the one that broke in the wind just as she fell. And it fell with her, just a little ways above her.

And it landed on her just seconds after she hit the ground, crushing the lower half of her body.

At first he thought he could just move the branch, carry her back to the village and get her some help. But before he could even try he smelt it.

Blood.

It had been faint, but he smelt it. A piece of the branch had stabbed through her. He knew that trying to remove it would surely kill her. And even if it didn't the massive bleeding afterwards would. So not only was she half crushed by a tree branch but impaled by it too.

And now, here she was.

Lying on the forest floor.

Fighting a losing battle against death.

Sasuke looked down at her, watching as she tried to blink the sleepiness out of her eyes. She was still trying to fight it, even though it was obvious she couldn't win.

A small sigh escaped passed his lips as he changed the location of his grasp from her wrist to her hand. He could feel the coldness in it, almost lost of all warmth. He felt the urge to drop her hand and revert back to his normal personality, but his subconscious wouldn't let him.

"Sakura, I want you to go to sleep."

"Hun?" Sakura looked up at him, a puzzled look on her face. "Why?"  
He looked down at his hand, still holding hers, to avoided her gaze.

"Just do it." He mumbled. He knew she would keep fighting, she was stubborn like that. But if she just relaxed, just went to sleep, then maybe... "You'll feel better afterwards..."

"Your probably right." She whispered. He could hear the tiredness in her voice. He looked back at her face, seeing her eyelids already beginning to fall. Her jade eyes looked strangely blank, he could tell she was delirious now, that her mind was half lost in a daze. "You won't leave... well you?" Sakura asked, her eyes dropping a little more. "You'll still be here when I wake up... right?"

"Yeah..." Sasuke answered, careful to control his voice. Gently he put her hand down beside her. "I'll still be here."

She was forgetting. Forgetting why she was going to sleep, why she was lying out here on the forest floor.

Forgetting she was going to die.

Sakura gave his face one last look before closing her eyes. "I love you, Sasuke." She whispered softly. Sasuke watched her for a minute as her breathing became deeper and softer.  
_  
"I know... you don't love me Sasuke... but..."_

He reached out with his hand, gently brushing away the pink hair that had fallen across her face. He watched as a look of bewilderment come across it, obviously wondering what was happening.  
_  
"Do you think you could... maybe... pretend that you do? Please, even if it's just for a minute."_

He gently ran his hand along her face, feeling the warmth beginning to slowly leave it too. She slightly nuzzled her face in to it as he did. He bent down closer to her, making sure she could hear him.

"I love you too, Sakura." He said softly before moving back to his original position. He saw a smile come across her face, a smile he knew she would always wear.

He didn't love her, but he did care for her. And if hearing him say those few words would give her one last moment of happiness, then he would pretend, for just a minute, that he did love her.

Sasuke sat there, listening to the wind as it moved through the trees around him. He stared down at her as he listened, watching as the sunlight danced along her smiling face. He sat there for several minutes before standing up. He gave one last look at her before turning around, making his way back to the village.

Despite saying he would stay, he was leaving. Because he knew she wouldn't be waking up.

* * *

A/N ... I really hope nobody wants to hunt me down with a pitchfork and impale me with it. So... do you like it? Hate it? Or do you find it somewhere in between? This is actually two firsts in one, seeing as this is my first Naruto fanfiction as well as my first one-shot. I'm not really sure how I got the idea for this, but I did. It probably isn't as good as the others out there but hopefully you didn't find it horrible.  
Well, I hope you can find the time to review this piece of work. If you don't I won't know what you thought about it. 


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